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AIBU?

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Original poster

kids left in car in car park/called Police

158 replies

Delilah21D00LoT · 24/08/2018 21:17

Just wondered if you would have called the police or 'turned a blind eye'.

Tuesday this took place:

12:55 DIY store car park two little boys (4 & 6 sitting in an unattended car when I came out of store.

So 15 mins later I went into store to ask for call out. Which they did to no result.

I Couldn't get through to Police on 101 but managed to get through on web chat.

13:25 blues and twos arrived.

13:40, Dad comes out of store and was very 'casual' tried to blame the kids by saying they didn't want to go into the shop 😡.

Police chaps also noticed that neither boys had car seats! To which the Dad went on about they usually use them, but due to his shift work he was too busy.

Police took my details and then I left them all to it and headed home.

Was I wrong to call the Police?

OP posts:
confusedandconfuddled · 26/08/2018 18:51

*We infantilise children....
*
Definition of this is to "treat as if one is immature". Which is exactly what children are. Would it be preferable to treat them all as adults?

footballmum · 26/08/2018 18:56

Isn’t the more obvious risk that the children would let themselves out of the car and wander off? Confused

crazycolour · 26/08/2018 18:58

footballmum

Or be taken.

Myimaginarycathasfleas · 26/08/2018 19:03

@frogsoup My point is that there are risks to leaving a child alone in a car, particularly if you are daft enough to leave the keys with them. Even the most sensible children can do unpredictable things. People use cars as babysitters but actually their children are unsupervised and unprotected. I’m not saying don’t do it, I’m saying know the risks if you do.

formerbabe · 26/08/2018 19:03

I'm quite a protective parent...they are 7 and 10, but never out of my sight if we're out. They have never been left home alone or walked anywhere by themselves but I think there's a lot of hysteria on this thread. All this nonsense about parked cars spontaneously combusting...fgs, the risk is very low, negligible. Statistically children are at far more risk being driven in cars..or walking across car parks or crossing the road. We don't think parents are being irresponsible for driving their child somewhere but it's far more dangerous than the possibility of a parked car bursting into flames.

delphguelph · 26/08/2018 19:05

I'd have called too.

littlesquish · 26/08/2018 19:10

Sometimes some people need a sharp shock to the system to realise what they are doing is not right. Hopefully this will do it for him and those poor kids, who don't realise, because they're bloody children, if they were in a car accident that their lives would be at risk more than they need be without their seats. You did the right thing Smile

frogsoup · 26/08/2018 19:33

Myimaginarycat the problem is that risks aren't there in isolation. Saying 'oh I knew a child who got hit in a stationary car and got life changing injuries' tells you precisely nothing about whether you should leave them in a car or not, because unless you are on the hard shoulder of a motorway you are exponentially more likely to be hit outside a stationary car than in one.

It's like people who say 'oh I can't leave my 9yo alone in the house, I might be in a car accident while I'm gone', when this is the exact situation when your child would clearly be safer left the house rather than sitting in a crashed car Grin

NoLightInTheTunnel · 26/08/2018 19:33

I've never heard of parked cars bursting into flames

My sister went to the dump once, got out of her car, walked to dump the rubbish and her car just exploded behind her. It can and does happen.

I would've called the police as well OP.

unicorncow · 26/08/2018 19:36

I would never leave my 4 and 6 yr old in the car alone for any period of time, you definitely did the right thing!

OkMaybeNot · 26/08/2018 19:50

That's a long time to leave little kids unattended in a car. Yanbu.

FlipnTwist · 26/08/2018 20:08

If the kids weren't distressed then I think callin the police was a massive overreaction.

If the car burst into flames surely the kids would do exactly the same as if you were there ie get out!

crazycolour · 26/08/2018 20:19

The kids might not have known any better if they are kept in the car a lot.

No car seats, FIL did that. His own son in law reported him. Think it was an £80 gone.

Faith7777 · 26/08/2018 20:20

You did the right thing. Well done. Hope they’re more people like you out there.

BarbarianMum · 26/08/2018 20:31

And what exactly are we to take from that Nolight? That we should never put our children in a car (or get into one ourselves) in case they explode???

Mehaveit · 26/08/2018 20:32

I've got a 3 and 5.5 year old. Absolutely not no way never would I do that! I've left them outside the post office with a big window so I'm able to watch them but lord only knows what they would get up to in 45 minutes Grin Especially the 3 year old. She loves pressing all the buttons when I supervise her playing at driving!

NoLightInTheTunnel · 26/08/2018 20:41

And what exactly are we to take from that Nolight? That we should never put our children in a car (or get into one ourselves) in case they explode???

No, just telling the people insisting it doesn't happen that it does, in fact, occasionally happen, that's all.

anniehm · 26/08/2018 20:41

For a few mins eg paying for petrol when you can't pay at the pump fair enough, I see kids about that age outside Tesco express, but often it's takes under 5 mins inside. 45 minutes no way. Same applies for leaving home alone - around that age I popped to drs pharmacy counter to pick up camomile lotion (chicken pox) but it was opposite the end of my (admittedly long) drive, felt guilty all the same but was told by receptionist not to bring her! I was actually more worried about the lack of car seats safety wise, at least the dad didn't leave them at home

crazycolour · 26/08/2018 20:46

“Think it was an £80 gone“ ??? £80 fine!

boylovesmeerkats · 26/08/2018 20:57

You did the right thing. I sometimes leave mine in the car asleep on the drive (being watched constantly and it'd be obvious is anyone was around) and would leave them when I fill up or for a minute maybe, but this is different. My 4 year old can unwind the window and climb out! So no way is it safe to leave kids like that.

Although my mum does tell me about how my grandad would take her to london for a meeting, leave her on the steps for an hour or so with strict instructions not to move and then they'd have a nice time sightseeing after. Times have changed!

LeftRightCentre · 26/08/2018 21:04

LOL @ all these sensible young children. They're not. They're not neurologically mature, it's why they do stupid stuff.

BanananananaDaiquiri · 26/08/2018 21:04

When I was 6/7 it would have been my idea of heaven to be left in peace in the back of the car with a comic or a book, or a notepad and pencils to write/draw, instead of being dragged round yet another boring shop. (Not so much at 3 or 4 obviously, or with a small sibling to look after.) Different times then though.

Crankywitch · 26/08/2018 21:09

Massive over reaction. Then some irritating virtue signaling thrown in. Yabu

Boulty · 26/08/2018 22:13

No you were correct.

frogsoup · 26/08/2018 22:46

LeftRight yes I can trust my 9yo 100% not to try to start the car if I leave her unattended for five or ten minutes Confused. Just like I trust her to stay at home alone for 20 or 30 minutes without doing anything stupid. Because shes 9 not 4 (actually she's nearly 11 now, but referring back to what I did when she was 9) and as your kids get older you need to start trusting them more as they get more reliable, otherwise you'd still be spoon-feeding and dressing your 18yo. Surely to God that's hardly a controversial concept?!